Some modern communications solutions are based on VoIP (Voice-over IP (Internet Protocol)) technology, which involves the transmission of calls over a data network based on IP. The communication is in the form of packet data and thus there is no fixed connection as there would be in the case of switched networks. The communication can be text, voice, graphics or video. In order to simplify IP communication problems, standards have been developed and adopted in the industry. Examples of such standards are H.323 (Packet based communication systems) and SIP (Session Initiation protocol). These standards are followed when designing new hardware and software. The SIP standard covers the technical requirements to set-up, modify and tear down multimedia sessions over the Internet. A multimedia communication session between two endpoints will be referred to as a call.
Conventional peer-to-peer packet-based networks contain multiple network devices that can communicate with each other. One example of such a peer-to-peer network is a network of interconnected VoIP terminal sets. Some VoIP terminal sets are smart phones that supply their own services for operation of the VoIP terminal sets, in which services include audio prompts for voice mail or auto attendant functionality, dialing rules, data storage for recording voice mail messages, and other call processing functions. However, as the number of services in such VoIP terminal sets phones increases, the overall cost of the phone increases as well due to the additional hardware, such as memory, necessary to store service providing program code or data accumulated from use of the services. Therefore, a more efficient manner of service use would benefit the current state of the art in peer-to-peer networks.